The European Union (EU) Ambassador to Pakistan, Dr. Riina Kionka, has responded to the proposal by Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to extend Pakistan’s GSP Plus regulations until 2027. She clarified that this extension is intended to prevent a “cliff edge” scenario at the end of 2023 and is unrelated to Pakistan’s performance or that of any other beneficiary country. EU member states will decide soon, and monitoring will continue.
The announcement comes in response to a social media post by Dr. Gohar Ejaz, caretaker federal minister for commerce and industries, who shared the news of MEPs’ decision to extend the GSP Plus rules and thanked the EU Parliament for facilitating trade from developing countries.
Ambassador Kionka reiterated the EU’s support for Pakistan’s commitment to fulfilling its GSP Plus obligations and emphasized that the extension would maintain the same trade preferences and access to the European market as before.
The EU Parliament’s press room revealed that MEPs had extended the existing rules aimed at reducing or eliminating import duties on products entering the EU market from over 60 developing countries until 2027. This extension aims to provide stability and continuity in trade relations.
